Worldâ€™s oldest nuclear reactor to restart

Reactor block 1 at Beznau nuclear power plant can restart after a three-year shutdown for repairs, the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate said on Tuesday.Â Built in 1969, the Beznau facility in canton Aargau is the worldâ€™s oldest commercial nuclear power plant. It has been out of service since March 2015, when anomalies were found in its steam generator.Â The safety authorities now say the reactor presents no security risk.Â Following the announcement, utility company Axpo said it hopedÂ to have the reactor fully up and running again by the end of March. But there was immediate protest from environmental groups who called this â€œabsolutely irresponsibleâ€�. Beznau is one of two reactors that were shut down to check the quality of steel components used in their steam generators. The Beznau II reactor was built in 1971.Â +Read more about Switzerlandâ€™s aging nuclear plantsÂ Switzerland has five nuclear power reactors which generate about 34.5% of the nationâ€™s energy needs. It …